Proposals

Abstract

Although it is becoming an increasingly popular technological platform, access to virtual reality curriculum and development is fairly limited at the University of Washington. The Department of Human-Centered Design and Engineering is developing an initiative to increase access and resources to students at all levels in order to support design, development and research utilizing virtual reality platforms. For this reason, HCDE seeks to acquire 20 virtual reality (VR) workstations and a classroom set (30) of Oculus Quest 2 VR headsets to achieve the following goals: 1. Enable UW students working on virtual reality development projects and research to create VR applications and perform user testing on them; 2. Make high-throughput VR activities by UW students possible at a greater level ; 3. Open the field of VR design and research to students intersecting with HCDE classes and research projects 4. Provide UW HCDE instructors the opportunity to include VR development and immersive experiences as part of their curriculum; 5. Develop Directed Research Groups focused on the intersection of VR and human-centered design. Through these objectives, this initiative will aid in reducing accessibility to VR equipment, thereby increasing equity and access for students interested in learning to develop for virtual reality - an up and coming technology platform. This initiative reinforces UW's position on the forefront of innovation in the fields of VR and interactive education, opening the door for UW students at all levels to begin work in the field of VR development and research from its outset.